Los Angeles daily herald., 1887-10-10
THE SCHOOLS.
Parents Complaining of What
Cannot be Helped.


The lack of proper schooling facili-
ties in this city is creating considera-
BILE comment among the residents in
some of the districts, but this is not
an unusual state of affairs. In San
Francisco, the largest city on the
coast and the wealthiest, the schools
are acknowledged to be, with few ex-
ceptions, disgrace to the city. For
the past two years in that city there
has not been enough room TO accom-
modate the children; but in some in
stances the Board of Education has
rented rooms on the outside or put up
temporary sheds. In this city the
system adopted has been entirely diff
ferent. Instead OF spending the funds
for sheds, the school sessions have
been shortened to half the ordinary
length, one set OF children attending
one half day and another set the
other half day. The necessity for this
will soon be done away with for efforts
are being made to push the building
of new schools houses as rapidly as
possible and the residents OF the over
crowded districts as well as others are
anxious that no obstacle shall be put
in the way Of the accomplishment OF
this end.
OF necessity in rapidly growing
city like this, there are many things
in relation to the schools which ought
to be done but which cannot simply
because there is not sufficient
amount of money furnished. For in
stance, in other cities throughout the
country sheds are provided in the
play grounds where the children may
sit without enduring the heat OF the
sun or the rain in winter. In this
city as vet no sheds have been pro-
vided and the children lose q
portion Of their vitality by being forced
to spend their recesses without the
means of shelter. On a warm day
this is particularly trying to the little
ones, but until more liberal allowance
is made the sheds cannot be built.
A visitor to the schools in this city
at once notices the fact that the school
grounds are not beautified in any
particular and some comments have
been made on the subject but this also
must be laid to the door OF the lack of
funds. The school houses themselves
are kept in the very best order, thanks
to the efforts of the Board of Education,
but there has been no money to pay
for anything outside of the bare
necessities. A San Francisco gentle
man who r. with two daughters
has taken up his residence
in this city stated yesterday
that he did not see the necessity for
districting the city. This is not done
in San Francisco, but he admitted that
in that city there were more school
rooms according to the population
than there are here. 81 understand"
said he, "that you will have number
of new school rooms built very
shortly. Perhaps that will relieve the
pressure, and hope that when they
are finished the Board of Education
will arrange it so that no more than
one grade is taught in any room. l
find that my daughters cannot learn
nearly 80 we'll when there are two
grades in the room, and the best way,
it seems to me, to raise the standard
IS 10 separate tlle SrducS. vi Couso
this cannot be done in some of the
outlying districts, but with the addi-
tional rooms it can be partly accom-
plished."
The matter of redistricting the city
will come up for consideration as
soon as the new school houses are
finished, and until that time the
parents, however much they may OBJ
ject to sending their children long
distances, must bear with the situa-
ton, which is due more to them, per-
haps, than the School Board which
has do lhe best it could under the
Ices. The school bonds
nj be sold in week or so and in
the meantime the plans for school
houses will be perfected and contracts
drawn up ready to be let. This action
of the Board of Education will hasten.
the proper adjustment of affairs as
much as it is possible under the cir
cumstances, and it is expected that
byJanuary first there will be no cause
for complaint.